A birth injury lawyer in Houston, TX knows that when you have a child, you should be happy and excited. But sometimes, there are risk factors or negligence when a baby is being born that can lead to birth injuries with long-term damage.
John K. Zaid & Associates has experience in many fields of law, with a philosophy that keeps us working hard for our clients and being transparent and truthful. There’s no lying about fees or costs, and we’re upfront about our expectations and what you should expect too. Let us help you grieve this injury, and we’ll help you figure out what happened—to process it—and demand compensation and that the medical staff or hospital correct their errors.
But what is a birth injury? This is an injury that’s usually physical and occurs when the child is born. Not every single birth injury is avoidable, but many are. We’ll help you determine if you have a case, we’ll make sense of the medical phrasing that’ll be used in your child’s medical documents.
What does my lawyer have to prove a lawsuit for a birth injury case?
Your birth injury lawyer in Houston, Texas is going to have to prove that your healthcare team was medically negligent. By doing this they will prove that the medical team and their negligence was directly responsible for the child’s birth injury. To do as your lawyer is going to gather several forms of evidence to support this claim, as in an exact timeline of events as they followed during childbirth, medical records and documents that prove medical professionals committed medical and practice.
Who can be sued for a birth injury that’s caused by medical malpractice?
Generally more often than not the defendants in a birth injury law case are going to be the medical staff that help to deliver your baby. This medical staff could consist of your obstetrician, nurse or any other medical personnel who can be deemed negligent with the care of your child during their delivery. Sometimes you may actually sue the hospital where your child was delivered.
What is the statute of limitations for a birth injury case?
Every case has a statute of limitations. And in general you should file as soon as you realize there’s an issue and you have a case. With the birth injury lawsuit filing sooner rather than later is going to be best. The statute of limitation is going to limit how much time you had to file your lawsuit from when the child sustained the birth injury and if you wait too long to decide to file past that time limit you may not be able to sue. Statutes of limitations for birth injury lawsuits are going to vary by each state and you should talk to your birth injury lawyer in Houston, Texas about limitations.
What is the difference between a settlement and trial?
Most birth injury lawsuits are going to resolve out-of-court with assignment. Birth injury settlements are going to allow the case to come to a quicker conclusion and turn to your family receiving compensation faster than in court. The amount of compensation that you are awarded is going to be different for each case, each case is going to vary in severity and your child’s type of birth injury. The estimated amount of their lifetime costs and other factors are going to play into this. Some birth injury cases will go to trial and a judge and jury will hear arguments from both legal teams, and decide who wins. The trial process may add a lot of time to your lawsuit and if your side loses you may not receive any money at all.
Reach out to your birth injury lawyer in Houston, Texas for all of your other questions. Knowing about birth injuries is the first step to suing for your birth injury. Keeping your child safe and knowing why they are born a certain way when they were supposed to be born perfect is important, even if you can’t use the money you earn, settlement to change your child’s outcome. It can make you financially stable and more able to take care of your child and their special needs.
What Are Risk Factors?
Understanding the risk factors that can cause birth injuries can help you to better understand what may have gone wrong.
- If the baby is large, there may be issues with having a natural birth.
- The baby is feet-first in the birth canal.
- The baby is born too early or prematurely.
- The size of the mother’s pelvis and birth canal can make it difficult to have a natural birth.
- The labor is difficult or long.
- The mother is overweight.
- The mother opts for or requires a Cesarean delivery.
- Devices such as vacuums or forceps are used to deliver the baby.
But what are some of the most common types of birth injuries?
- Swelling of the head.
- Bruising of the head.
- Bleeding underneath a cranial bone.
- Breakage of blood vessels in the infant’s eyes.
- Facial nerve injuries caused by pressure to the child’s face.
- Injury to the child’s brachial plexus nerves.
- Fracture of the clavicle or collarbone.
What Will a Birth Injury Lawyer Do?
The birth injury lawyers in Texas from John K. Zaid & Associates are experienced in dealing with lawsuits involving injuries at birth. Whether you or your baby were injured, we want to help you get the compensation you deserve. This should be a happy time for you and your family, and you certainly should not be responsible for additional medical care due to the negligence of someone else. Your doctor, nurse, the hospital, the pharmacist, or all of the above should be held responsible for their actions. We will seek compensation not only for the medical bills you have been forced to pay, but also for additional future bills we suspect you will have, as well as potential pain and suffering compensation for all of the trouble you have been put through. If applicable, we may also seek damages for lost wages due to missed work from the injuries sustained. Finally, some birth injuries affect a child for the rest of their lives. If this is the case, you deserve to be fairly compensated for this devastating fact. Money can’t bring back health, but it can take care of the bills that are sure to come along in the future. It can also help make things easier on your family, so we will seek as much compensation for you that we think is necessary.
Since birth injuries are particularly devastating personal injury cases, you should be sure to file for extra damages for pain and suffering, loss of companionship, loss of enjoyment of life, and even costs associated with therapy for you and your child. You may also need extra care in your home to assist with a disabled child, which should also be covered in the damages. Since we are seasoned birth injury lawyers, we know what to ask for in a case, and will be happy to help guide you throughout the entire process to get the compensation you deserve.
How Do You Prove Negligence in a Birth Injury Case?
Proving negligence in a birth injury can sometimes be difficult. This is why it is important to have a birth injury lawyer in Texas who has a lot of experience in the field. We know what kind of expert witnesses will be necessary to have, how to research the specifics of your case, and how to read the medical records to spot important issues to note in court. We will also investigate further if anything seems suspicious about your records and hire outside help if necessary. Negligence in a birth injury can sometimes be hard to prove, but we have a great track record and will be happy to discuss this with you further at our consultation. During a consultation, we will figure out if you might have a case and if we would be a good fit to work with one another. This way we can move forward quickly and with confidence to ensure you get compensation for everything you have been through.
Should You File a Medical Malpractice Claim?
When you are still reeling from your traumatic child birthing experience and know that your precious baby suffered from birth injuries, you are likely wondering whether you can file a medical malpractice claim. Medical malpractice and childbirth injuries are difficult because these injuries that can leave your child permanently injured could have been prevented. That said, medical malpractice is not necessarily as simple as other types of personal injury cases and you will need to work with different medical experts to show that the injuries inflicted on your child could have been prevented if it was not for the medical professional’s negligence.
Does that mean any unintended outcome is malpractice?
Not necessarily. Like any other medical procedure, childbirth can result in an outcome you were not hoping for, whether it is an injury to the mother or the child. In some cases, an injury is the only likely scenario. However, if the medical professional who was giving you and your baby care during the birthing process acted negligently or below the medical standard of care, this is when medical malpractice comes into play. A birth injury could be:
- Uncontrolled bleeding
- Bruising or lacerations
- Brain damage
- Leaving a medical instrument inside the mother
- Birth defects
These are only a few possibilities, but birth injuries can affect the child and/or the mother.
When does a birth injury happen?
Birth injuries can occur when a doctor fails to diagnose a problem or potential problem while the mother is pregnant or it can happen as the mother is giving birth. So, while your pregnancy may have been very healthy, the doctor may make a mistake right before or during delivery. For example, a baby could be cut with a surgical instrument during a cesarean section or they could be injured by tools the doctor uses during vaginal birth.
Who is responsible for bringing this case forward?
Although the victim in a personal injury or medical malpractice case is usually responsible for bringing a case forward, when the victim is a minor, the parents can bring it to a lawyer and proceed with the case. If you believe your child’s injuries during birth or in the womb were preventable, it is important you seek legal help from a trusted birth injury lawyer. They can help you gather evidence from your experience and speak with medical experts who can testify regarding what a competent doctor would do.
